Residents had expressed concern over a variety of issues including added costs to homeowners and a lack of grant funding for low and moderate-income homeowners. When other historic districts have been designated in the city, grant funding has been made available. No such grant funding is currently available.

Residents also expressed concerns about the process and the lack of outreach for community input.

Although HPO's recommendations were largely followed by the board, the panel did make several additions south of Benning Rd. including:

The addition of St. Benedict the Moor

The addition of Rosedale St. between 19th and 21st St NE

The addition of the south side of Gales St. between 19th and 21st St NE

The only board member who voted to oppose the application outright was Andrew Aurbach. Mr. Aurbach has been a long-time member of the board and discussed several issues before casting his vote including his concern that community support should be a factor in the board's decision-making. He expreswsed his opinion that community outreach had been insufficient and urged councilmembers to change HPRB's mandate to reflect the idea that community support should be a major factor in considering future proposals.

Other board members echoed concerns about the process and lack of sufficient community input, but voted to support the designation despite their comments. One new member who sat in on the hearing, but had not been included in previous hearings abstained from the vote.

Moving Forward

LCA is currently working to have our community included in other cultural designations that will more noticeably recognize the contributions of African-Americans to our city without the added expense to homeowners.

​Please keep an eye on our blog for updates about these and other important community events.

After a contentious all-day hearing, the Historic Preservation Review Board voted to postpone their decision on the proposed Kingman Park Historic District until next week on Thursday, May 3. During next week's hearing the board will make a final decision on whether to accept the original boundaries submitted by the Kingman Park Civic Association (KPCA) or boundaries suggested by the Historic Preservation Office (HPO). Public comment will not be accepted at the May 3 hearing and the board could also decide to postpone or reject the application outright, but these options appear less likely.

The original application submitted by KPCA included the Kingman Park and Rosedale neighborhoods as well as portions of Langston and Carver shown in the map below. The HPO suggestions would not include any part of the Carver or Langston neighborhoods which have not already been designated historic (eg: Langston Terrace Dwellings and Langston Golf Course).

LCA president, Sydelle Moore testified at the March 22, 2018 hearing to represent the community's opposition and submitted more than a dozen letters on behalf of concerned residents in the Langston neighborhood. Ms. Moore did not testify again at the April 26, 2018 hearing as board members requested that only residents who had not previously spoken be allowed to speak.

Comm. Henderson, ANC5D05 spoke at both hearings in support of the neighborhood's inclusion in the historic district, despite holding no public meetings on the topic prior to announcing her support in November 2017 and vocal opposition from constituents -- especially homeowners between 18th and 21st St NE.

HPO Releases Guidelines

The DC Compensated Emancipation Act of 1862 ended slavery in Washington, DC, freed 3,100 individuals, reimbursed those who had legally owned them and offered the newly freed women and men money to emigrate. It is this legislation, and the courage and struggle of those who fought to make it a reality, that we commemorate every April 16, DC Emancipation Day.

It’s that time of year again! Join Mayor Bowser at the 2018 DC Emancipation Day Parade and Concert on Saturday April 14, 2018 from 2:00PM to 8:00PM.Please let me know if you can attend, so I can keep an eye out for you. I look forward to seeing you this Saturday!

Thanks so much to everyone who took time out of their busy schedule to attend the Langston Civic Association's community roundtable with Mayor Bowser. These meetings are only effective when neighbors show up and address the issues that are important to them and make it clear that we care.

Please know that this will not be the last of these conversations with the mayor or councilmember and that every single issue addressed will receive follow up from the mayor's staff as well as our civic association president, Sydelle Moore. If you have additional issues, questions or comments, please email us.

There is already a map of sidewalk and street repairs in the hands of our Mayor's Office of Community Relations as well as DDOT to address the specific concerns raised last night. MPD will also be attending the next Langston Civic Association meeting to continue to work on our concerns about recent shootings in the area. The Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement has also dispatched members of their response team to try and help with getting appropriate violence intervention staff to track down and mediate between the parties involved in recent shootings.

The civic association meetings are open to all and we look forward to continuing to work together to enhance civic pride, community engagement and safety. OUR NEXT MEETING WILL BE TUESDAY, MARCH 6, 2018 AT 6 PM at 2109 Maryland Ave NE (rear entrance).

During a meeting of the Historic Preservation Review Board on January 25, members of the board postponed taking a final vote on the Proposed Kingman Park Historic District until at least March 22, 2018. Several members of the board expressed doubt that final action will be taken at the March meeting and have instructed the Office of Planning to continue working with the applicants on community outreach and education.

In front of a packed room, the board expressed reservations about community outreach and support. Board members also had questions about the boundaries proposed by the applicant and how they compare to newly released recommendations from the Historic Preservation Office (HPO). Several board members expressed a preference for the boundaries in the plan submitted by HPO while others await additional information.

Langston Civic Association president, Sydelle Moore testified before the panel about community concerns and fielded questions from board members about upcoming development in the area surrounding Hechinger Mall.

The meeting ran an additional 2 hours beyond the scheduled 12 PM end time to hear community comments and concerns most of which were against the proposal or requests for additional information.